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RENARD (18) Taken in 1803. A flush-deck ship sloop with sixteen 18-pounder carronades and two long 6-pounders. She carried a complement of 121 officers, men and boys.
  • 1805 Lieut. Jeremiah COGHLAN was promoted commander on 1 May 1804 and he was appointed to RENARD at Jamaica.
    (See VIPER for his earlier service)
  • Off the north coast of San Domingo on Friday 20 April 1805 a ship was was seen to leeward standing to the north west and she was soon identified as an enemy cruiser.
    Capt. COGHLAN gave chase and, in a little over 3 hours, closed with the enemy who immediately shortened sail and opened fire.
    RENARD did not reply until she was within pistol-shot and after 35 minutes the enemy ship was seen to be on fire.
    Ten minutes later she blew up.
    COGHLAN lowered a boat and rescued all the 55 men who had escaped the flames and been blown into the water.
  • The enemy ship was the ex Royal Navy sloop LILLY, then mounting 16 guns, which had been captured off the Georgia coast on 15 July 1804 and renamed GENERAL ERNEUF.
    Commanded by Paul Gerard Pointe, she was cruising as a privateer after leaving Basse Terre seven days earlier to intercept the home-going Jamaica fleet and had been armed with eighteen 12-pounder carronades and two long guns.
    On board had been 129 seamen and 31 soldiers of whom between 20 and 30 had been killed or wounded before the explosion.
    RENARD lost only nine men wounded, the enemy fire being mainly directed at her sails and rigging.
  • Before the action Capt. Pointe hailed RENARD and called on her to strike.
    Capt. COGHLAN replied through his trumpet "Aye! I'll strike, and damned hard too." The inhabitants of Jamaica expressed their thanks to RENARD in a letter from the mayor of Kingston.
  • After a long chase on the north side of San Domingo on 11 October, RENARD captured a French privateer schooner BELLONA. She was armed with four carriage guns and carried 50 men.
    Only four months old she was a fast sailor and in the seven days she had been cruising from Barracona she had taken one American brig.
  • On 28 May 1806 Capt. COGHLAN captured the French national brig DILIGENT, Capt. Vincent Therenard, which was seven days out of Pointe a Petre, Guadeloupe, with dispatches for France.
    Unfortunately these were thrown overboard during the chase before RENARD came up. She was armed with fourteen 6-pounders and two 32-pounder brass carronades and carried a crew of 125 men.
    The brig being coppered and copper fastened and only three years old, Vice-Ad. DACRES directed her to be purchased for his Majesty's service and she was commissioned with a sloop's complement. She was renamed PRUDENTE in the autumn and WOLF the following year.
    When taken on board RENARD, Capt. Therenard expressed surprise at the smallness of that vessel, and asked Capt. COGHLAN for a certificate that he had not shown cowardice.
    Capt. COGHLAN declined 8ut offered him one saying that the Frenchman had acted prudently!


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